Café Operations Coordinator

cape group Australia; City of Melbourne; On-site; AUD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

cape is a not-for-profit registered NDIS provider supporting people with disability across Melbourne's eastern and northern suburbs. The Café Operations Coordinator role focuses on shaping a growing network of social enterprise cafes and a new catering/kitchen operation, delivering great hospitality and meaningful employment opportunities.

Based across multiple sites, you will help ensure consistent food quality, service standards and efficient operations, while collaborating with café teams and

Qualifications

• Food Safety Supervisor certification or capacity to obtain it.
• Qualification in commercial cookery or hospitality.
• Experience in a cafe, catering or commercial hospitality environment.
• Knowledge of food safety, hygiene and workplace safety requirements.
• Experience with menu implementation and supplier relationships.

Responsibilities

• Support café teams to deliver consistent food quality, presentation, customer service and operational standards.
• Assist with approved menus, seasonal offers, catering packages, sales activities and promotional initiatives.
• Monitor sales, customer feedback, stock, waste and operational information, and raise trends or concerns with management.
• Conduct regular site visits and routine food safety checks, maintaining accurate inspection and compliance records.
• Support ordering, supplier relationships, inventory controls and consistent stock-management practices.
• Maintain accurate product, pricing and menu information in café Point of Sale systems.
• Provide practical support during operational changes, café openings, refurbishments and service expansions.
• Help teams resolve routine operational issues and elevate significant commercial, system, food safety or workplace safety matters.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives that strengthen customer experience, efficiency, compliance and commercial outcomes.
• Work collaboratively with internal teams, suppliers, catering customers, auditors and other stakeholders.

Skills

Food safety

Café operations

Communication skills

Multi-site coordination

Influence without authority

Education

Food Safety Supervisor certification

Hospitality qualification

Tools

POS systems

Reporting tools

Job description

Reports to: General Manager Employment

Hospitality with purpose. Help shape great cafés while creating meaningful employment opportunities for people with disability.

Join cape and help shape the future of five social enterprise cafés while contributing to the launch of a new commercial kitchen business.

This is an opportunity to use your hospitality expertise to deliver great food, great customer experiences and life-changing employment opportunities for people with disability.

About cape

cape is a not-for-profit registered NDIS provider supporting people with disability across Melbourne's eastern and northern suburbs. Nadrasca and Brite joined in April 2025 to form cape, bringing together more than 120 years of combined experience. Nepean Centre joined us in June 2026, followed by Monkami Centre in July 2026.

Through cape solutions, we provide innovative employment and training opportunities for people with disability. Our cafés and catering services are an important part of this work.

At cape, our goal is simple: everyone we support has their best day, every day.

The role

As Café Operations Coordinator, you'll help shape the future of cape's growing café network and emerging catering and commercial kitchen operations.

Working across five social enterprise cafés, you'll support the delivery of a consistent customer experience, high food and service standards, strong operational practices and sustainable commercial outcomes. You'll work closely with café teams to identify opportunities for improvement, share hospitality best practice and help bring approved initiatives to life.

This is role for someone who loves hospitality and enjoys working to improve quality, performance and customer experience. You'll have the opportunity to contribute to menu implementation, operational improvements, food safety, catering growth and the development of new hospitality opportunities across the organisation.

While the role has no direct reports, we are looking for someone who can build strong relationships across multiple sites, influence outcomes through expertise and collaboration, and help create hospitality experiences that support meaningful employment opportunities for people with disability.

What you will do

• Support café teams to deliver consistent food quality, presentation, customer service and operational standards.
• Assist with approved menus, seasonal offers, catering packages, sales activities and promotional initiatives.
• Monitor sales, customer feedback, stock, waste and operational information, and raise trends or concerns with management.
• Conduct regular site visits and routine food safety checks, maintaining accurate inspection and compliance records.
• Support ordering, supplier relationships, inventory controls and consistent stock-management practices.
• Maintain accurate product, pricing and menu information in café Point of Sale systems.
• Provide practical support during operational changes, café openings, refurbishments and service expansions.
• Help teams resolve routine operational issues and elevate significant commercial, system, food safety or workplace safety matters.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives that strengthen customer experience, efficiency, compliance and commercial outcomes.
• Work collaboratively with internal teams, suppliers, catering customers, auditors and other stakeholders.

Who we are looking for

• You are a practical, solutions-focused hospitality professional who can support consistent standards across several locations without relying on direct line-management authority.
• You communicate clearly, build trust quickly and know when to solve an issue and when to elevate it.
• You’re someone who leads through influence, partnership and credibility, not authority, and who enjoys working alongside others to achieve great outcomes.
• Food Safety Supervisor certification, or the capacity to obtain and maintain it.
• A relevant qualification in commercial cookery, hospitality, food services or a related discipline, or equivalent practical experience.
• Demonstrated experience in a café, catering or commercial hospitality environment.
• Practical knowledge of menu implementation, food preparation and customer service standards.
• Sound understanding of food safety, hygiene and workplace safety requirements.
• Experience conducting routine food safety checks and maintaining compliance records.
• Experience with Point of Sale systems and hospitality reporting tools.
• Strong organisational, time-management, communication and relationship-building skills.
• The ability to interpret basic sales, inventory and operational information and provide practical recommendations.
• Resilience, adaptability and a commitment to inclusive workplace practices and cape values.
• Experience supporting multiple hospitality locations or services is desirable.

Why join cape

• Make a practical contribution to café and catering services that create employment opportunities for people with disability.
• Work across a varied, multi-site hospitality environment where your coordination and improvement skills will have visible impact.
• Collaborate with café teams and specialists across employment, finance, marketing, quality, safety and ICT.
• Join an organisation committed to inclusion, continuous improvement and helping people have their best day, every day.

Employment requirements

• Current NDIS Worker Screening Clearance and a Working with Children Check prior to employment.
• International Police Check may be required if applicable.
• Evidence of unrestricted Australian residential and working rights.
• Willingness to undertake a medical assessment to determine fitness for the inherent duties of the position.
• Commitment to complying with cape policies, workplace safety requirements and the NDIS Code of Conduct.